Tiger by the Tail: Previewing the 2009 Detroit Tigers

I have to share a recent and recurring nightmare I've had with you all...

It starts out so well.  My beloved Detroit Tigers have brought in a huge superstar to go with a team that was just one year removed from a World Series appearance.  All the experts are raving about the Tigers and the baseball world is simply trying to figure out who the Tigers will be playing in the Fall Classic.

And that's where this nightmare begins.  The Tigers stumbled out of the gate in 2008 with an 0-7 record (six of those being at home), and simply never recovered.  If the season could be described in two words it would be "Murphy's Law".  Stars had disastrous years (Justin Verlander and Gary Sheffield), stalwarts went down like lame horses (Jeremy Bonderman and Carlos Guillen), and the "future" wasn't realized for various reasons (Joel Zumaya and Dontrelle Willis).  If it weren't for Miguel Cabrera and Armando Galarraga, the Tigers would've been closer to 100 losses than 90 losses.

I still wake up with a feeling of despair every now and then.

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Herein lies the beauty of the greatest sport in the world; each spring optimism is rejuvenated, much like the flower blossoms that signal the beginning of a new baseball season.

I'm pulling a card here, and it's called "let's forget last year." The perfect storm of destruction is all behind us now.  There's simply no possible way that the same type of bad luck can haunt this team two years in a row (only the Cubs can claim otherwise).

Early returns of spring training have been overwhelmingly positive for every major player on this team.  Until I hear otherwise, I will assume that everyone is not only healthy, but will produce their career means, at the very least.

Let's take a look at the different areas of this team.  As it is with every team, success starts with pitching.

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